Top WNBA Team Suffers Major Blow on Tuesday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Jun 18, 2025 7:12 AM ET

It was a busy night in the WNBA on Tuesday as 12 out of the 13 teams in the league were in action.

One of the biggest games of the evening came in the form of the Minnesota Lynx hosting the Las Vegas Aces at Target Center in a pivotal Commissioner's Cup matchup.

In the end, it was the Lynx who secured a crucial win of 76-62 which saw them clinch the No. 1 spot in the West for the Commissioner's Cup. This means that Minnesota is now headed to the championship game on July 1. They will defend their title against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, who clinched their spot in the Final with an 88-71 win over the Connecticut Sun.

The bad news for the Lynx is that they lost their best player in Tuesday's game. This is after Napheesa Collier was forced to exit the contest in the third quarter due to a back issue.

Minnesota later announced that Collier would not be able to return to the game due to the injury. She finished with seven points on 3-of-9 shooting, six rebounds and one assist in 19 minutes of action.

The details of Collier's injury have not yet been revealed, and it remains to be seen if the four-time All-Star will be forced to miss time because of this problem.

The Lynx should provide an update on their star forward's injury soon, but until then, Collier's status for Minnesota's home game against the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday will be up in the air.

Collier has been the backbone of the Lynx's success this season. The reigning Commissioner's Cup MVP entered Tuesday's win averaging 26.1 points on 53.3% shooting, 8.8 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 2.0 steals, 1.6 blocks and 1.6 triples per game.

Minnesota currently occupies the No. 1 spot in the WNBA with an 11-1 record, and they would not be where they are right now had it not been for Collier's dominant play.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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